Proposal
by LittleRedOne
Summary: Nate asks Caitlyn to marry him. Does it turn out the way he thought it would? "He stood in front of her with a small smile on his face and she wondered if he had any idea what he’d actually just said." For LaPaige’s ‘One Hundred and One’ forum. Naitlyn


**A/N:** Sorry for the scarce posts and the lack of review replies ( those are coming)! Never before have I wrapped so many Christmas presents in one day! It's just lucky that I genuinely enjoying wrapping gifts. It's a busy time for me because my wonderful family flew in this past weekend from both Germany and Hawaii. We only see them every few years so I've been with them as much as possible. I love visiting with them. Though I'll admit it's sad having to work my way back in with my seven year old cousin who, last visit, was attached to my hip. :(

This is a fic for LaPaige's 'One Hundred and One' forum. I still like to write one of these from time to time. There is a link in my profile to the prompt list if you're interested. This time I chose _57. Proposal._

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Camp Rock or anything you recognize from the movie.

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"Marry me."

Caitlyn instantly stopped talking and stared up at him in shock. He was standing in front of where she was seated on the couch with a small smile on his face and she wondered if he had any idea what he'd actually just said. He had just asked her to marry him. Well, it was more of a command than a question, but the intent was clear. She didn't have any clue how they would have gotten to such a thing either. One second they'd been arguing over her lack of desire to put down the book she was trying to read so they could go on their planned date and then the next he was proposing – sort of.

"Excuse me?" she asked, with just the slightest hint of hysteria ringing through in her words.

"If I asked you to marry me right now," he answered, smartly choosing new words, "what would you say?"

She stared at him again before shaking her head. "No," she told him simply, finally setting her book down. "I'd say no."

He looked briefly wounded, but was quick to pull himself together. "Why?

"Nate," she sighed, "you don't actually mean this. Maybe you've had too much caffeine or something."

"I have not," he frowned. "I am perfectly sane and perfectly under my own influence. I want to know why you won't marry me."

She rolled her eyes at him. She couldn't help it; it was a natural reaction to stupidity. He wanted to know _why_ she wouldn't marry him. She could think of a whole list of reason why she wouldn't marry him.

"For starters," she said, standing to be more on level with him, "how about the fact that, though we've been friends for years this is only our third official date?"

"Third?" he scoffed. "We've been on a lot more dates than that; you just didn't know they were dates."

"Those were not dates," she said firmly. "Unless both parties are under the impression it's a date then it's not."

"You have your opinion and I have mine," he dismissed her words. "Either way, you can't deny that they were very date like in appearance and etiquette."

"That's because you rarely ever let me pay for anything," she informed him.

"A lady should not have to pay for herself on a date."

"Except they weren't dates so you should have just let me pay."

"I repeat, you have your opinion and I have mine."

She wondered briefly if "knocking some sense" into his head would be as simple as reaching out and smacking her hand to the back of his head. She laughed inwardly at the thought. She didn't want to hit him, and she wouldn't, but he was making it pretty difficult to figure out any other way to make him see. They just couldn't get married. Not now at least. Maybe one day, after they'd been on more dates and tried out being a couple longer. They'd only been together for two dates – three if you count today – which was really only just over two weeks' worth of time. She wasn't even sure she'd call him her boyfriend or not yet. They made for great friends, but she wasn't yet sure they'd make for a great couple.

"Come on Caitlyn," he said softly, reaching out and grabbing hold of her hand. "You act like marrying me would be such a bad thing."

"And you act like it would be such a _good_ thing," she countered. He chuckled.

"It would be."

"You don't know that," she shook her head.

"And you don't know it wouldn't be a good thing." He smiled at her as she frowned. "You can come up with a hundred reasons why you shouldn't marry me and it wouldn't matter," he told her. "I've already got a thousand reasons why we should."

She blinked, surprised by how serious he was being. He really, truly meant that they should get married. He honestly thought that they were ready for that. She couldn't wrap her head around it. She had learned that he'd liked her long before he ever let it be known and she may have liked him for quite a run herself, but _marriage_? She was having trouble coming up with a response to that, but she managed to choke out a quiet "Why?"

He pulled her closer and she hated the way his eyes made her feel like she would be hanging on his every word. "Caitlyn," he said fondly. The word was almost a caress and he didn't speak again for several minutes. She was sure anything he'd have to say after that could convince her and she concentrated all her thoughts on listing reasons why they shouldn't be married. They'd just started their relationship. They knew each other well, but there was still so much they didn't know – important things. They were still young. They had two different- "There are just certain times in life when you know in the depths of your heart, no, _your soul_, that things are exactly how they're supposed to be. And I know this, us, is one of those things."

"Nate," she broke in before he could continue. She could already feel her resolve wavering at his sweet words and didn't want to chance hearing any more of it. "If you're so sure about us then just wait. Wait until we're _both _ready, until we're _both _sure. Give it time and then maybe ask again – it you still want to."

"I'll want to," he was quick to supply. "I will always want to."

"I believe you," she told him. "So you don't have to rush into the decision now. We need to take things slower. We've been friends for years, but we're still only twenty-two years old and new to dating each other. We have a lot of time left to decide about marriage and any other things. We're not in any rush."

"Okay," he agreed slowly. "I can wait. Because I love you and I'll be patient for you."

Caitlyn blinked because in all her thoughts it never occurred to her that he would want to marry her simply because he loved her. It was odd, she realized, but he'd never _said_ he loved her and, though she _knew_, it wasn't the same as hearing him say it. She knew she loved him as well, but she didn't want to say it. She refused to get over the fact that they'd just started dating. They may have liked each other for a long time and that like may have evolved to love, but until she really knew him – knew him in a way that only a girlfriend could – she would not tell him she loved him.

"Thank you Nate," she smiled. "That's all I'm asking for."

He leaned down and gave her a slow kiss that made her lips tingle with pleasure. She couldn't wait for the day he would propose and she was ready to accept. She had a feeling it wouldn't be as far away as she really thought though.

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**A/N:** I'm sorry if I missed any errors. Usually Microsoft Word catches them for me, but since my computer was wiped ebfore when it failed on me, I'm functioning solely on Word Pad. Which is no help with spelling or grammar. I checked it a few times, but I very well may have missed some things.


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